The BESC group went to the Coyote Call Trail today. There were 6 of us. Mary was there to sign up people but said we'd probably have to find a new leader. Darlene told me that Mary had been in the hospital but Darlene didn't know any other details. This is only Darlene's 3rd hike she's ever taken and she loves hiking. She's gone twice with the BESC group and once with a YMCA group from Albuquerque. She was very enthusiastic about the hike she took with them - the Valle Grande Trail.
I was going to stay with the group on the Coyote Call loop but when they went a tiny way on the Alamo Boundary Trail, I had to keep going. I was telling myself while walking out to Dome Road that I am so lucky to live in such a beautiful area with all the trails we have.
My foot is no better. It's very distressing. I wish I knew of something to help it right now. I'll do some stretching and strength work this afternoon.
I usually don't eat a lunch but I was ravenous today. I ate a can of beans, 2 pieces of rye bread, a tomato, a smear of sesame paste, and a cinnamon apple Clif Nectar bar but I'm still hungry.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Friday, August 15, 2008
Dentists - A Necessary Evil
I was so bummed out yesterday after the dentist appointment and also because of extreme lack of sleep from getting up at 5:30am to go to Albuquerque both for the dentist appointment and a 9:30am Acura service appointment.
I always get this feeling about my dentist that even though he is nice to my face that he thinks I'm a hysterical female behind my back. Yesterday I caught a fleeting glimpse of him making an exasperated, impatient face behind my back. Maybe it's not against me personally and he's just overworked and finds females are fair game to take out his job frustration on. He's always super nice to my face but I think he feels like I'm complaining too much about the fit of my splint that I wear at night. I can't help it that it was fitting perfectly at night and then the last visit when he adjusted it, it caused my teeth to clamp together on my right side and made my right bottom tooth sore. He did another adjustment yesterday and I'm still determining if it works or not. I was too chicken to try sleeping last night on my right side. Ever since the last adjustment when the tooth got sore, I switched to sleeping on my left side until I could get in to see him yesterday.
Another thing that pisses me off is that each time I pay over $100 for these adjustments. It's like I might as well pay $1000 (I'm guessing!) all at once for a new splint rather than slowly dribbling money away on these adjustments.
Saying all that, I still think that he's a good dentist. I just wish he would move to Santa Fe or Los Alamos!
We skipped the Betty Ehart Senior Center hike today because I could not bear the thought of getting up at 6am to get ready for it. I missed going on it but was happy to sleep in.
Lots of good food shopping at Vitamin Cottage in Santa Fe. Now that I'm cutting back on nuts, I need to add back some more whole grains so I bought some bread, crisp bread, rice, cooked cereal, and dried cereal. I also bought some taste enhancers like gomasio, ginger, low fat ginger vinaigrette, red curry paste, and black bean dip.
Tomorrow we hike as we're all shopped out for the meantime.
The doctor thought that Norm's rash, which has basically faded, was from contact with an unknown plant allergen. I don't think we have bedbugs after all.
I always get this feeling about my dentist that even though he is nice to my face that he thinks I'm a hysterical female behind my back. Yesterday I caught a fleeting glimpse of him making an exasperated, impatient face behind my back. Maybe it's not against me personally and he's just overworked and finds females are fair game to take out his job frustration on. He's always super nice to my face but I think he feels like I'm complaining too much about the fit of my splint that I wear at night. I can't help it that it was fitting perfectly at night and then the last visit when he adjusted it, it caused my teeth to clamp together on my right side and made my right bottom tooth sore. He did another adjustment yesterday and I'm still determining if it works or not. I was too chicken to try sleeping last night on my right side. Ever since the last adjustment when the tooth got sore, I switched to sleeping on my left side until I could get in to see him yesterday.
Another thing that pisses me off is that each time I pay over $100 for these adjustments. It's like I might as well pay $1000 (I'm guessing!) all at once for a new splint rather than slowly dribbling money away on these adjustments.
Saying all that, I still think that he's a good dentist. I just wish he would move to Santa Fe or Los Alamos!
We skipped the Betty Ehart Senior Center hike today because I could not bear the thought of getting up at 6am to get ready for it. I missed going on it but was happy to sleep in.
Lots of good food shopping at Vitamin Cottage in Santa Fe. Now that I'm cutting back on nuts, I need to add back some more whole grains so I bought some bread, crisp bread, rice, cooked cereal, and dried cereal. I also bought some taste enhancers like gomasio, ginger, low fat ginger vinaigrette, red curry paste, and black bean dip.
Tomorrow we hike as we're all shopped out for the meantime.
The doctor thought that Norm's rash, which has basically faded, was from contact with an unknown plant allergen. I don't think we have bedbugs after all.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Sleep Tight, Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite
Norm's wondering if we brought home some bedbugs from our vacation in Salida and Alamosa. He has some red marks on his lower legs. I'm washing his bedding using hot water but can't wash the mattress cover because it's too big for our machine. If he gets more red marks, I'll have to make a trip to the laundromat.
WI hike very good - lots of altitude gain and a total of 6.77 miles. Only 15-16 people. Some only went to Paliza Pass, coming from as far away as Santa Fe - admirable! I had never gone up Los Griegos quite the way that we did. Part was on blue diamond XC ski trails, part on Upper Los Griegos Road, and part on a trail. The trail part hurt my right foot because it was so canted and because the Asics shoes I tried out yesterday from Roadrunner Sports did a number on my foot and set it up for pain. Oh, well - I made it up and down and I'm alive but rolling my feet across the tennis balls - feeling better already!
I'm getting used to the group's laid back attitude about breaking up into 2 groups. They keep track of each other via cell phone and it works for them.
Mahlon looked for boletus but found none he wanted to take home. Leon says this year is a poor one for butterflies. Bob says there are 2 Spanish classes held at MPL - one free and one pay. Kathy enjoyed my lunch spot on Los Griegos and agreed that it has great views. I always sit where I can get the best view of Redondo Peak. Barbara did a good job leading, building directional arrows for the slow group. On Upper Los Griegos Road, we even put pieces of paper directing which way to Los Griegos and which way to Paliza Pass!
It was really dramatic today with the dark clouds massing above but sunshine directly overhead. No rain happened except on the drive home.
WI hike very good - lots of altitude gain and a total of 6.77 miles. Only 15-16 people. Some only went to Paliza Pass, coming from as far away as Santa Fe - admirable! I had never gone up Los Griegos quite the way that we did. Part was on blue diamond XC ski trails, part on Upper Los Griegos Road, and part on a trail. The trail part hurt my right foot because it was so canted and because the Asics shoes I tried out yesterday from Roadrunner Sports did a number on my foot and set it up for pain. Oh, well - I made it up and down and I'm alive but rolling my feet across the tennis balls - feeling better already!
I'm getting used to the group's laid back attitude about breaking up into 2 groups. They keep track of each other via cell phone and it works for them.
Mahlon looked for boletus but found none he wanted to take home. Leon says this year is a poor one for butterflies. Bob says there are 2 Spanish classes held at MPL - one free and one pay. Kathy enjoyed my lunch spot on Los Griegos and agreed that it has great views. I always sit where I can get the best view of Redondo Peak. Barbara did a good job leading, building directional arrows for the slow group. On Upper Los Griegos Road, we even put pieces of paper directing which way to Los Griegos and which way to Paliza Pass!
It was really dramatic today with the dark clouds massing above but sunshine directly overhead. No rain happened except on the drive home.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
WI: Upper Water Canyon-American Springs Road Hike
There were 26 people. Upper Water Canyon was lush and lovely. An amazing amount of work has gone into clearing it after the 2000 Cerro Grande Fire. There are even log bridges. The raspberries were thick - I can imagine bears down in the canyon enjoying a sweet snack. A savory snack could then be provided by a passing hiker! The cutleaf coneflower (pretty sure) was spectacular - huge masses of cheery yellow that were nearly as tall as me in places.
When we got to American Springs Road (FR181), the group continued east on the road to the left turn off (the one that goes up a tributary to Water Canyon and eventually to Cerro Grande). From there, we picked up the Fireline Trail and took that over to FR2997 and that back to FR181 and then down to the water tanks off NM501 and back to Water Canyon.
I really admire anyone who takes on the task of leading a group this big and can sympathize with our LL leader not wanting the group to get any bigger. Kathy, the leader, did stop and wait for everyone at crucial junctions but Renate, in the slow group, fell and had to be attended to (she was OK) which caused the slow group to get way behind. When Kathy found this out via a cell phone call to the lagging group, she made a point to wait for everyone at the meadow where FR181 makes the big right turn to go south. It seemed, though, after that, that the fast group (me too!) galloped ahead toward the lunch spot Kathy was hoping for, and, in the meantime, the slow group made the executive decision to stop for lunch.
We all wondered what had become of the slow group. Kathy called them again and discovered that they had stopped for lunch and didn't really know how to get back to the cars so she had to change her plans slightly because, wisely, she didn't want to split up the group so we had lunch and afterwards, when the caboose group joined us, we all went down FR181 together.
It rained a few drops and thundered weakly at lunch but no bad weather developed.
A big German shepherd, Jake, a fine-looking dog, was on the hike. He carried his own water and a few pieces of litter that his owner, Mahlon, picked up to put in Jake's saddlebags.
When we got to American Springs Road (FR181), the group continued east on the road to the left turn off (the one that goes up a tributary to Water Canyon and eventually to Cerro Grande). From there, we picked up the Fireline Trail and took that over to FR2997 and that back to FR181 and then down to the water tanks off NM501 and back to Water Canyon.
I really admire anyone who takes on the task of leading a group this big and can sympathize with our LL leader not wanting the group to get any bigger. Kathy, the leader, did stop and wait for everyone at crucial junctions but Renate, in the slow group, fell and had to be attended to (she was OK) which caused the slow group to get way behind. When Kathy found this out via a cell phone call to the lagging group, she made a point to wait for everyone at the meadow where FR181 makes the big right turn to go south. It seemed, though, after that, that the fast group (me too!) galloped ahead toward the lunch spot Kathy was hoping for, and, in the meantime, the slow group made the executive decision to stop for lunch.
We all wondered what had become of the slow group. Kathy called them again and discovered that they had stopped for lunch and didn't really know how to get back to the cars so she had to change her plans slightly because, wisely, she didn't want to split up the group so we had lunch and afterwards, when the caboose group joined us, we all went down FR181 together.
It rained a few drops and thundered weakly at lunch but no bad weather developed.
A big German shepherd, Jake, a fine-looking dog, was on the hike. He carried his own water and a few pieces of litter that his owner, Mahlon, picked up to put in Jake's saddlebags.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Need New Paradigm for This Online Journal
First of all, because it would be too boring and lengthy for daughter to ever want to read. The only reason I'd want to read an online journal written by my mother is to see if it gave me any insight into the person she was. Detailing what she did, day by day, would be boring and I'd just skim it for the juicy parts.
Also, I'm tired of the labels for the post and of writing in complete sentences. In a written journal, phrases are often the order of the day. Extracting labels gives me anxiety as to if they're descriptive or not. I'm only doing it because I started doing it and am obsessive in that way. I doubt that anyone's going to care if I put in labels or not. Probably when I kick the bucket, Blogger won't exist and daughter will just be reading this in backups on CD ROM.
Really, when you think about it, a written journal would have a lot more archival longevity and be more accessible for my heirs but I know that as soon as I stop typing in Oats Wild, I won't start writing in the composition book journals. I never had a good track record for that, only writing in them every few months.
Maybe I just don't want to keep a journal at all! I'd rather spend my time reading a book. Is the world going to really care if I don't detail my days? I haven't written in this since last Thursday and I would really, really like to detail each day, in the spirit of obsessiveness, but I'd like to get done on the computer. Spouse is taking it in to Dr. Mac for an upgrade tomorrow so we can use the iPod we got with our LANB credit card SCORE Rewards. He also bought an external harddrive for me to move my photos to.
I walked 2 miles up Pipeline Road today. Visually, the green gambel oak bushes do nothing for me. It was a lot prettier in the spring when the gambel oak leaves still wore their reddish fall raiment and golden grass dotted the hillsides. The wildflower display as seen at the edge of the road wasn't overwhelming. The prettiest wildflowers were the Indian paintbrush, coneflower, and gayfeather but there wasn't a lot of those. There was a lot of snakeweed (at least I think it was snakeweed).
Also, I'm tired of the labels for the post and of writing in complete sentences. In a written journal, phrases are often the order of the day. Extracting labels gives me anxiety as to if they're descriptive or not. I'm only doing it because I started doing it and am obsessive in that way. I doubt that anyone's going to care if I put in labels or not. Probably when I kick the bucket, Blogger won't exist and daughter will just be reading this in backups on CD ROM.
Really, when you think about it, a written journal would have a lot more archival longevity and be more accessible for my heirs but I know that as soon as I stop typing in Oats Wild, I won't start writing in the composition book journals. I never had a good track record for that, only writing in them every few months.
Maybe I just don't want to keep a journal at all! I'd rather spend my time reading a book. Is the world going to really care if I don't detail my days? I haven't written in this since last Thursday and I would really, really like to detail each day, in the spirit of obsessiveness, but I'd like to get done on the computer. Spouse is taking it in to Dr. Mac for an upgrade tomorrow so we can use the iPod we got with our LANB credit card SCORE Rewards. He also bought an external harddrive for me to move my photos to.
I walked 2 miles up Pipeline Road today. Visually, the green gambel oak bushes do nothing for me. It was a lot prettier in the spring when the gambel oak leaves still wore their reddish fall raiment and golden grass dotted the hillsides. The wildflower display as seen at the edge of the road wasn't overwhelming. The prettiest wildflowers were the Indian paintbrush, coneflower, and gayfeather but there wasn't a lot of those. There was a lot of snakeweed (at least I think it was snakeweed).
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Bonanza of Balls
Satisfied my hankering today for balls to rub my sore feet on. The tennis court in Western Area had loads of them. Now I can rub my balls in every room! (bawdiness intended)
I wonder what the etiquette is for picking up errant tennis balls strewn outside the tennis court's perimeter fence? One of the houses adjacent to the tennis court has an electric fence - perhaps to discourage miscreants such as myself from picking stray balls in out of their yard?
Went up Pajarito Mountain to the Aspen Lift via the Oxbow Road and Zero Road East. I was too sissy to walk on the wooded bike paths by myself. Back at the parking area, picked wild raspberries for a tasty afternoon snack.
I wonder what the etiquette is for picking up errant tennis balls strewn outside the tennis court's perimeter fence? One of the houses adjacent to the tennis court has an electric fence - perhaps to discourage miscreants such as myself from picking stray balls in out of their yard?
Went up Pajarito Mountain to the Aspen Lift via the Oxbow Road and Zero Road East. I was too sissy to walk on the wooded bike paths by myself. Back at the parking area, picked wild raspberries for a tasty afternoon snack.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Pajarito Mountain Ski Area Bike Trails
David and Faye always say we should hike together when I see them but we've never done it. I hiked with them today, starting from the Lone Spruce lift and following jeep roads and bike trails to the top of Rim Run where they had some lunch and we all enjoyed the views.
Faye took off right away and I walked behind David but next time, I'd like some Elevated Heart Rate (EHR) so I'll follow Faye. I could hike with Dave every other time.
We only did 4 miles and Dave stopped in at the ski area office and got his badge. I've met more ski area employees this one day than in all the years I've been in Los Alamos - Tom Long is the ski area manager, Don Sauer is the manager of the ski area office, and Mike Green, along with Jessie May, a fierce blue heeler, is the maintenance manager.
I walked another mile afterwards and was surprised to see Dave and Faye still there. They had found a bonanza (incidentally, the ski area has spelled "Bonaza" on one of the signs for the Bonanza run!) of aspen wood, which they prefer because it doesn't create much creosote. Ski area employees had cut it down and told Dave and Faye that they could haul it away. They'll go up tomorrow and get the rest and invited me to walk with them again.
Mike Green said that Jessie May (for whom Faye always carries a dog biscuit) had treed a bear and there are several bears in a range of sizes roaming the mountain.
The ski area office has glossy bike map brochures.
After I left Dave and Faye, I saw 2 small deer, one with small velvet antlers, on the hill above me and I flushed a grouse in the woods - gave me a start! Faye said that one time Betsy saw a cougar on the mountain. On Monday, Dorothy and I saw several roadside animals - first a coyote, then a young deer, and last, 2 raccoons running across NM126.
Faye took off right away and I walked behind David but next time, I'd like some Elevated Heart Rate (EHR) so I'll follow Faye. I could hike with Dave every other time.
We only did 4 miles and Dave stopped in at the ski area office and got his badge. I've met more ski area employees this one day than in all the years I've been in Los Alamos - Tom Long is the ski area manager, Don Sauer is the manager of the ski area office, and Mike Green, along with Jessie May, a fierce blue heeler, is the maintenance manager.
I walked another mile afterwards and was surprised to see Dave and Faye still there. They had found a bonanza (incidentally, the ski area has spelled "Bonaza" on one of the signs for the Bonanza run!) of aspen wood, which they prefer because it doesn't create much creosote. Ski area employees had cut it down and told Dave and Faye that they could haul it away. They'll go up tomorrow and get the rest and invited me to walk with them again.
Mike Green said that Jessie May (for whom Faye always carries a dog biscuit) had treed a bear and there are several bears in a range of sizes roaming the mountain.
The ski area office has glossy bike map brochures.
After I left Dave and Faye, I saw 2 small deer, one with small velvet antlers, on the hill above me and I flushed a grouse in the woods - gave me a start! Faye said that one time Betsy saw a cougar on the mountain. On Monday, Dorothy and I saw several roadside animals - first a coyote, then a young deer, and last, 2 raccoons running across NM126.
Torn
The thing about a blog journal is I start to feel obsessive about writing in it. Then when I miss a day, I feel like just giving this up all together because it seems too hard to try to capsulize my days. I have this need to write every detail and, even though it seems like I do from the length of the blogs, it pains me to have to leave out details! Also, my mouse-clicker wrist is seeming to dislike too much time on the computer. I'm typing now without resting my wrist on the computer table.
An aside about computers. Ours Apple G5 gets slower and slower. I complain to my computer guru but nothing gets done. I need a computer that writes to dvd so I can take all my photos off and maybe things would run faster. Safari is horribly slow with the rainbow twirling ball appearing and then I have to wait and wait. In some ways, the computer is no faster than before we had dsl. Also, Yahoo! is prone to such idiotic defects like this morning when I tried to delete my junk mail and Yahoo! kept making me sign in again. I think that spouse is wrong not to have some kind of anti-virus protection software. It could also protect against junk and mal wares. I'm complaining but I do nothing about it either.
Capsulization: On Sunday, I ended up going on the SF Southern RR train ride to the Galisteo Basin. The Galisteo Basin is very pretty but the rest of the train ride, through the bowels of Santa Fe and past the Railrunner construction (amazing concrete railroad ties!), is forgettable. Admitedly, we did pass through some nice housing areas - El Dorado? I feel sorry for the people in the poorer neighborhoods that have their houses practically on top of the tracks. At least it was a little cooler than the last time I rode this train. Mary and Dave, son in law's Mom and step-Dad, drove down from the Jemez redrock country to go on the ride. When I saw Mary's enthusiasm for going on the train, I told spouse to buy me a ticket too. I wish I were that upbeat and cheerful!
We got to know Dave a little better. I thought it was interesting that he said he likes dogs better than people. This was in the context of his telling us that his Mom was a real social magnet with people coming over all the time and her always baking cakes. He was an only child and says he was spoiled rotten. The first time we met him, he was pretty quiet. It turns out that Marge Fraser, who used to hike with Bonnie, Mary Ann, Carol, and me, is his aunt. Regarding hordes of people, I told him that when our father was sick in the hospital, our aunt came over and all five of us kids hid from her and wouldn't answer the door.
My forearm feels like it's going to start cramping so I'm now resting my wrist on the table. I think it's from my weightlifting. I don't lift heavy weights but something must not be setting right with my right arm.
We ate at the Zia Diner. I had ahi tuna nicoise (don't ask me to pronounce it!) salad which had a huge chunk of raw tuna cooked exactly as I requested and was very delicious.
Grandson didn't have his meds that day and ate virtually nothing, in part because spouse had unthinkingly bought him a Dr. Pepper, soon before we got off the train, loaded with sugar and caffeine so he was completely wired and did everything but put a lampshade on his head and he would have if one had been available. Mary did her very best to talk intelligently with grandson but he just gave silly answers. On the upcoming La Veta train ride, he'll take his meds.
Son in law read a book a lot on the train and the car ride to and from. I wonder if he's shy.
Monday's Dorothy hike was longer than I thought it would be - 3.65 miles. I was thinking that we'd drive all that way and only hike a mile but it turns out there is more country off NM126 and FR144, down to FR376, than I had thought. Dorothy zoomed in and xeroxed a portion of a map from the travel management rule people that showed a road going from NM126 to FR376. I haven't yet seen the map of our actual route but I think we found it and it's called FR126C. It might have been part of old NM126 and is a really nice, wide gravel road that connects NM126 and FR376. So, now the problem of getting down from the west rim on FR144 to the continuation of the west rim on FR376, without having to walk on paved NM 126, is entirely solved! The main obstacle remaining is to find a way down from Virgin Mesa to Battleship Rock. We're taking a 2 week hiatus and will resume explores August 21. Thankfully, we met no oncoming, homicidal maniacal semi-truck drivers on the blind curves. Oh, I was so grateful for that but I was prepared, putting the car in 2 and going slowly around the curves, with the windows open.
Yesterday, I was researching about how to strengthen the muscles in the leg and foot that prevent pronation. It seems that strengthening the butt muscles and the adductor (inner thigh) muscles might help. I really wonder if I need to go to an orthopedic surgeon. I think that any stiff or rigid orthotic would only hurt my feet. But, maybe the orthopedic surgeon, even if he's not really what I need, would direct me to a good podiatrist or pedorthist who could fix me up. I also ordered 4 more shoes from Roadruner Sports now that I have received the credit for the last 4. This time I ordered stability plus shoes. The neutral shoes didn't help my heel at all but made it hurt more.
An aside about computers. Ours Apple G5 gets slower and slower. I complain to my computer guru but nothing gets done. I need a computer that writes to dvd so I can take all my photos off and maybe things would run faster. Safari is horribly slow with the rainbow twirling ball appearing and then I have to wait and wait. In some ways, the computer is no faster than before we had dsl. Also, Yahoo! is prone to such idiotic defects like this morning when I tried to delete my junk mail and Yahoo! kept making me sign in again. I think that spouse is wrong not to have some kind of anti-virus protection software. It could also protect against junk and mal wares. I'm complaining but I do nothing about it either.
Capsulization: On Sunday, I ended up going on the SF Southern RR train ride to the Galisteo Basin. The Galisteo Basin is very pretty but the rest of the train ride, through the bowels of Santa Fe and past the Railrunner construction (amazing concrete railroad ties!), is forgettable. Admitedly, we did pass through some nice housing areas - El Dorado? I feel sorry for the people in the poorer neighborhoods that have their houses practically on top of the tracks. At least it was a little cooler than the last time I rode this train. Mary and Dave, son in law's Mom and step-Dad, drove down from the Jemez redrock country to go on the ride. When I saw Mary's enthusiasm for going on the train, I told spouse to buy me a ticket too. I wish I were that upbeat and cheerful!
We got to know Dave a little better. I thought it was interesting that he said he likes dogs better than people. This was in the context of his telling us that his Mom was a real social magnet with people coming over all the time and her always baking cakes. He was an only child and says he was spoiled rotten. The first time we met him, he was pretty quiet. It turns out that Marge Fraser, who used to hike with Bonnie, Mary Ann, Carol, and me, is his aunt. Regarding hordes of people, I told him that when our father was sick in the hospital, our aunt came over and all five of us kids hid from her and wouldn't answer the door.
My forearm feels like it's going to start cramping so I'm now resting my wrist on the table. I think it's from my weightlifting. I don't lift heavy weights but something must not be setting right with my right arm.
We ate at the Zia Diner. I had ahi tuna nicoise (don't ask me to pronounce it!) salad which had a huge chunk of raw tuna cooked exactly as I requested and was very delicious.
Grandson didn't have his meds that day and ate virtually nothing, in part because spouse had unthinkingly bought him a Dr. Pepper, soon before we got off the train, loaded with sugar and caffeine so he was completely wired and did everything but put a lampshade on his head and he would have if one had been available. Mary did her very best to talk intelligently with grandson but he just gave silly answers. On the upcoming La Veta train ride, he'll take his meds.
Son in law read a book a lot on the train and the car ride to and from. I wonder if he's shy.
Monday's Dorothy hike was longer than I thought it would be - 3.65 miles. I was thinking that we'd drive all that way and only hike a mile but it turns out there is more country off NM126 and FR144, down to FR376, than I had thought. Dorothy zoomed in and xeroxed a portion of a map from the travel management rule people that showed a road going from NM126 to FR376. I haven't yet seen the map of our actual route but I think we found it and it's called FR126C. It might have been part of old NM126 and is a really nice, wide gravel road that connects NM126 and FR376. So, now the problem of getting down from the west rim on FR144 to the continuation of the west rim on FR376, without having to walk on paved NM 126, is entirely solved! The main obstacle remaining is to find a way down from Virgin Mesa to Battleship Rock. We're taking a 2 week hiatus and will resume explores August 21. Thankfully, we met no oncoming, homicidal maniacal semi-truck drivers on the blind curves. Oh, I was so grateful for that but I was prepared, putting the car in 2 and going slowly around the curves, with the windows open.
Yesterday, I was researching about how to strengthen the muscles in the leg and foot that prevent pronation. It seems that strengthening the butt muscles and the adductor (inner thigh) muscles might help. I really wonder if I need to go to an orthopedic surgeon. I think that any stiff or rigid orthotic would only hurt my feet. But, maybe the orthopedic surgeon, even if he's not really what I need, would direct me to a good podiatrist or pedorthist who could fix me up. I also ordered 4 more shoes from Roadruner Sports now that I have received the credit for the last 4. This time I ordered stability plus shoes. The neutral shoes didn't help my heel at all but made it hurt more.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Quiet Day
Took grandson to Española Walmart Supercenter. Spouse took him to Wendy's for lunch. We rented him the Spiderwick Chronicles movie and bought him a new Bionicle (a Lego toy which he madly loves!), peanut and pretzel granola bars, salted pistachios (he loves those to death!), and a tube of mini M&Ms. The cashier handed the M&Ms right to grandson and I amusedly told the cashier about the good deal grandson was getting with his grandparent's. She said that he would remember those times for a long time like she remembers those with her grandparents. We're all more alike than unlike!
Tomorrow, everyone but me goes on the Santa Fe Southern Railroad Hotshot train. I know, I know - I should go but I went on it once and don't want to go again so tomorrow's memories won't include me. Grandson will have his other grandparents there though - son in law's Mom and step-Dad. We'll all eat out at the Zia Diner afterwards.
Tomorrow, everyone but me goes on the Santa Fe Southern Railroad Hotshot train. I know, I know - I should go but I went on it once and don't want to go again so tomorrow's memories won't include me. Grandson will have his other grandparents there though - son in law's Mom and step-Dad. We'll all eat out at the Zia Diner afterwards.
Friday, July 25, 2008
East Fork Flower Walk
Went with BESC hiking group to East Fork. Only 6 of us. Art went back looking for a stick to cross first rocks (only non-bridge crossing on trail) and then decided to do his own hike going up the hill west of the East Fork, going through some private property and finding an old cross country ski trail that Mary said was the first Roland Pettitt Trail, put in by Jim Burns and some middle school students. It had to be abandoned because the forest service said it was illegally put in. Times have changed apparently as there are plenty of unauthorized trails in the Jemez Mountains nowadays.
Natalie and I turned it into a flower walk. We saw lots more of the White Prairie Mallow. I wonder why Dorothy said she's mainly found it in the Sangres. We saw Parry's Harebell. I plucked some dogbane to show Natalie. There's still a profusion of flowers in bloom. The new bridge is in which replaces the last of the rickety bridges. They cut the old one off its moorings to put it out of commision.
The hike was only 3.3 miles. Natalie asked if I could drive her back to the senior center so Mary's car would be less crowded. On the way back, we encountered another maniacal semi-truck. I was following a car around one of the blind curves and I heard horn honking. I saw the car ahead of me had stopped so I stopped too and pulled my front end over toward the guardrail and would have moved over more if I had time but around the curve came blasting this god-awful, huge semi-truck that looked like it was going to clip me for sure. Amazingly, I didn't scream - maybe because Natalie was in the car. I've called the state highway transportation department to complain. This is going to go on until August 1 according to flashing warning signs that say watch out for heavy truck traffic. Someone's going to get hurt. The pumice trucks were never this reckless.
I finished my 4 miles on the Quemazon Nature Trail. Not a whole lot of shade since Cerro Grande but pretty nevertheless.
Next Friday's hike, spouse's Friday off, will be a hike around Cerro la Jara. Art wants to go to Cerros del Abrigo but Mary chose la Jara because that was the majority opinion. Most of the hikers don't want to do the 7 mile Cerros del Abrigo hike. I wouldn't mind but spouse and I will stick with the main group. We'd never see Art anyway!
I had time this afternoon to do upper body weight work, a smidgeon of yoga, and leg work which made me very happy!
Natalie and I turned it into a flower walk. We saw lots more of the White Prairie Mallow. I wonder why Dorothy said she's mainly found it in the Sangres. We saw Parry's Harebell. I plucked some dogbane to show Natalie. There's still a profusion of flowers in bloom. The new bridge is in which replaces the last of the rickety bridges. They cut the old one off its moorings to put it out of commision.
The hike was only 3.3 miles. Natalie asked if I could drive her back to the senior center so Mary's car would be less crowded. On the way back, we encountered another maniacal semi-truck. I was following a car around one of the blind curves and I heard horn honking. I saw the car ahead of me had stopped so I stopped too and pulled my front end over toward the guardrail and would have moved over more if I had time but around the curve came blasting this god-awful, huge semi-truck that looked like it was going to clip me for sure. Amazingly, I didn't scream - maybe because Natalie was in the car. I've called the state highway transportation department to complain. This is going to go on until August 1 according to flashing warning signs that say watch out for heavy truck traffic. Someone's going to get hurt. The pumice trucks were never this reckless.
I finished my 4 miles on the Quemazon Nature Trail. Not a whole lot of shade since Cerro Grande but pretty nevertheless.
Next Friday's hike, spouse's Friday off, will be a hike around Cerro la Jara. Art wants to go to Cerros del Abrigo but Mary chose la Jara because that was the majority opinion. Most of the hikers don't want to do the 7 mile Cerros del Abrigo hike. I wouldn't mind but spouse and I will stick with the main group. We'd never see Art anyway!
I had time this afternoon to do upper body weight work, a smidgeon of yoga, and leg work which made me very happy!
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